Lift it up. Roll back a bit onto hands. Steady. Steady.
Kaito swayed as he tried to find his balance. He had almost fallen over, was still in danger of falling over, but he had managed to get into a handstand. “Lead the way.”
…Yep. Gotta say, it’s a strange sight seeing anyone walking on their hands with tentacles on the top, much less himself… Sigh. His, or their, life. So weird…
“Right… It’s just a couple of streets away, but hopefully not too hard to make it to like that.” Kaito went to pick up the tub, trying not to spill any water out, just in case. And then he nodded to this other self and started to make his way back to the bathhouse.
“Well, that’s good. I think this is much better than the more common alternative, but I’d still rather have my legs back.” A pause. “I understand if you don’t want to look at me right now.”
Kaito tried to get a better feel for how to move everything that had replaced his legs so that he would be able to keep his balance better when he decided to move to deeper water. Which would be soon. A twitch here, a wiggle there. It was still weird, but he was getting used to it.
“No, I think I’ll be fine right now…”
He does watch a little as the other started testing the tentacles. Really, it’d be better to get used to them now, in case his double needed help getting more situated later. …Just not going to get too close.
“I might be able to make it there. Just let me soak for a bit.”
If he could just get the thing into the air and find his balance, Kaito could walk on his hands to wherever he needed to go. He had just woken up too dry and uncomfortable to try it earlier. He would just sit for now though, even if it was uncomfortable to lay like this.
The water felt so nice.
“It’s not just the scaly ones for you, is it,” less of a question and more of an observation. Kaito had noticed that the younger version of himself wasn’t looking at him much. “Unless I look even weirder from a distance.” Either he just looked that strange, or there was some fear there. Though that would be quite the poker face for such a tiny body, even with all the looking away.
Kaito hummed in acknowledgement at the first part. He doesn’t mind waiting, in case his double might need help getting there. But he blinked at the next comments, glancing over and tilting his head. He hadn’t really considered that the phobia might be a bit different between alternate selves. Hmm…
“No, you look fine. Well, as well as you can look, with how things are… It’s not as bad as scales, but yeah… not the most comfortable either. Basically, I guess I just don’t like it, but it won’t make me freak out or anything…”
“I don’t even know how this thing moves.” Kaito’s eyes widened as a tentacle twitched. Every sensation from the lower half of his body was strange and slightly alarming.
“Let me just-” He tried to sit up straight and fell over. “This is stupid,” he groaned.
Okay. One more try, but staying propped up on an arm this time.
“I think I might be able to get it from here. Thanks.” He cupped some water in his free hand and poured it over his lower half. Just that little bit made him feel better, and he inched even closer to the tub.
Lift it up, and twist.
At least the tentacles were in the water now, even though getting the rest of his lower half in the water seemed too difficult to attempt. Kaito flopped back down and tried to enjoy the feel of the water.
That was splashing. He was going to have to learn to control those better, but at least the rest of him was getting moist too.
“Where did you get the water from?”
The smaller Kaito stayed nearby, leaning against a wall, though he wasn’t looking completely at his other self. A couple of glances, but he simply looked off to the side most of the time.
“From the bathhouse close by. It was the quickest thing I could think of, unless we just wanted to try buying some water to throw on you until we could get home or to a pond or something.”
A shrunken thief is still a thief, but it’s not as though he doesn’t plan on returning it. …When they’re done using it and after it’s been cleaned… Lucky it was after closing, or it’d be a bit harder to explain what he needed the water for.
“The sooner the better.” Kaito was grateful that he still seemed to have lungs, so while he wasn’t comfortable, he could still breathe. He wasn’t going to die from this, at least not immediately. He would just wait here.
It was still unnerving to look at where his legs should be and see something else there instead. To feel something else there instead.
The little magician soon comes back to his other self with a small tub filled with water and sets it down by the other and lets out a breath. Might not seem like much for him normally, but jeeze was it harder to move around with his smaller frame…
“So… do we dump it on you, or… do you just need to put your… lower half in it a bit?”
Might not be scaly, but it’s still not the most comfortable to be near, so he’ll just keep his mind off focusing on it to go get some containers of water to help for now, until they can move his other self somewhere better.
“Some secrets need to be kept… Some stories should never be told… Some reasons shouldn’t be understood… They just might turn your blood cold
Who needs all the answers? Who takes all the chances? Who said the truth’s gonna save you? When the truth can be dangerous…
Like the way I feel. It’s alright to steal, What I need from you. Do what I have to do. Say what I have to say. Go where I have to go. And that’s dangerous… Dangerous… to know…”
Wait, what is it about the picture that’s caught your attention? What’s it called?
(Not sure if it’s an actual known painting or not. I’m not familiar enough with works of art to know myself. More that the content of the picture having a father and son and being one of the only pieces that was given a focus in that particular episode that caught my notice immediately. The only other one that seemed to have a focus aside from that one is…)
(This one. Which actually looks important, but, again, I don’t know paintings all that well. Considering this one is the one Jack was looking at, it may even be foreshadowing who he is or what’s going to happen, but… *shrugs* If it is, then kudos to A-1 for this episode, really. If not, then it’s just me focusing too much on why they put more detail and emphasis on showing these paintings over the others.)
((I’m sure you’ll be able to handle the trouble… Unless he uses his skills to go visit the doves and messes with them… You must train him well.))
“Yeah… Though I think he’ll learn not to mess with them on his own. I should say, it’s not them I’m worried about. They know how to deal with cats. They’ll need to learn not to mess with him too badly, too… Such is getting a new pet.”
Moonlight Archive 